Subfoliage and other cultivator or weed-cutter.



R. MANSBLL. SUBFOLIAGE AND OTHER GULTIVATOR 0R WEED CUTTER.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 3, 1912.

Patented Feb. 4, 1913.

inmyor flcabcn flax/42% fg W .4 Jlfttor up REIQIBIEN-M"ANSELL, orIaYMPn-n, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA.

SUBFOLIAGE AND OTHER ooL'rIvA roR on WEED-CUTTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 4. 1913.

Application filed August 8, 1912. Serial No. 713,141.

To dll whom' it may concern Be; it known that I, Runner: MANssLL, asubject of the King-of Great Britain and Ireland, &c.-, residing "atIrymplef in the State of Victoria,- Commonwealth of Australia, haveinvented certain new, and 'use fulflmprovements in Subfoliage and otherCultivators or Weed-Cutters:; and I do hereby declare the following tobe a folk-clear,-

and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable othersskilled in. the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. a

This invention relates to a sub-foliage weed cutting cultivator forvineyards and orchards to work chieflyv under loaves-and .branches whichhang; so low that the ground beneath them'cannot be'cultivated byordinary plows ,of'horse drawn implements.

The invention does not tend to supersede the use of'p'low's and harrowsfor working land accessible to them, but it will enable agreat deal ofhand weeding to be abolished.

"The attemptsof drivers of existing styles of implement towork thelatter close into vine and fruit tree stems often damages suchvegetation. To enable ordinary plows andcultivators to work close tosuch stems some 'vines and trees are grown with their branches raisedhigher from the groundthan'nature intended, the result being that thestems are not normally protected from sun and hot winds and the groundunder the foliagebecomes hardened or abnormal. This leads 111 some casesto extra expense or trouble 'when pruning, fumigating, and

fruit picking become necessary.

My implement may be used to deal wcedsnot overhung by foliage, and itwill cultivate the soil to some shallow-depth re-arranged for. Thehighest part of'rny implement will bakept comparatively near the groundat the part that may work beneat-h foliage, and there is a shield,provided such that the latter may touch low boughs and leaves and maypush them up or aside without inj uring them. Horseswill *usually' .beemployed to walk between rows of vines or trees, drawing my implement,part of which will" follow the horse track, while: another part orlateral extension of the frame has weed cutting and cultivating de vicesand will pass'under foliage.

My implementcould be provided with a motor for propelling it, but Ishall describe thesimpler horse drawn form. The cultivating parts of thelatter .-are rotated by: the rotatlon of a traveling wheel of theimplement, a11(l' tliis wheel is. of any suitable size:thrc feet indiameter in some cases. The preferred traveling wheel resembles a drumwith ends which taper-in barrel fashion. This taper allows theimplementto set differently from time to t ime,t ,o suit thev contour ofthe ground. As the'speed' of an ordinary agricultural implement .'-isslight, and I find that to destroy theweedsmembers moving faster arerequired, I use speed increasing means, as a train of gear wheels whichrolal lhe axle of the members used as Cultivators, weed cutters, andS011 clearer-s.

The cultivating of the ground canbe effected without-sintorfering withthose roots of vines or plants which are fairly near the surface of thesoil, and too high for ordinary plow-shares to pass over. My implementhas means provided for weighting it, and the adjusting and changing ofits weeding members or like parts can of:

footed at will. 7

'lhc'above and other details are illustrated inzlhe accompanying.drawings, but

the sizes, numbers and designs of part-s may be varied considerably,while keeping,

within what I claim. The implement may be used with or without a driversseat, or

a. footboard, or other minor accessories to which I make no claim. Fgure 1 shows a perspective view of my implement with some partsomitted.- Fig.

1 .ison a smaller scale than the other views.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation partly sectional showing some portions ofFig; 1. Figs. 3,

4, and 5, show weed cutting and soil treating details. Thus Fig. 3 isaside view in section through an axle. Fig. 54 is a view of parts inFig. 3 at right angles to the lat- .ter'figu're, and Fig. 5 exhibitsone'of various practicable modifications of the. parts in Fig. .3.

In these views a is the main 'frame,'b,

a drivers seat with pillar b, a a draft means, at a traveling wheel,shown with a loo wide tread which may carry or bc'eomposed of a seriesof soil ripping members, as

bars of anglei'ron 6, having edges adapted to firmly rip the ground. Onteaxle f of this trave ing wheel which is shown-of bar rel shape is agear wheel fg'Qbne on series;

which may be set in mesh with one another.

For example the Series shown includes smaller wheels h, and i, such thatthe latter surface which the implement as it advances will encounter.Wheel h can be normally moved into gear, inthecase illustrated by takingout cotter. pin I2. sliding the vwheel and replacing the pin, but otheradjusting 'means may be substituted.- During travel,

the axle j turnsrapidly normally, but the axle can be thrown outof gearas will now be evident. Frame a and wheel-(l are made heavy, and theweight is regulated and increased where desired. Thus for extra weight areceptacle or bucket Z is suspended from axle f within wheel d, by meansof lugs or ears m, and scrap iron, stones, or earth may be put in thisbucket, which is easy to load or lighten, as it does not rotate onsupport n indicates a side extension or frame, connected as by pivots nto main frame a.

-Frame n has an outer runner or skid n",

with a blade or share n, adapted to enter the ground 'to a slight depth.Skid n is adjustablein height as by setting its-spindle u which passesthrough a 'bearing t at-the outer end of frame 11 It is also adjusted sothat it can be swung on its spindle there intermediatelinks-as v, '10 w,from bein spindle u, to the spindle gl of-an adjusting handle a to-. beattended-t0 bye-the driver, "who will actuate itwhen suchan adjustmentwillenablea-stump or the-like to be avoided. The curved endusofframe n stands -out.to

the' sideof the implement beyond the skid n? and thus' promotes thesliding of the frame end past the edges of various obstrue- I tions thatmay be met. After handle z-has been operated and released the cutter nwill return to its normal position of travel somewhat as: a caster onfurniture docs.

Axle j carries cultivating or weed cutting I memberswhich can be,inmypreferred con struction, longitudinallyshifted to any dc siredrespective positions. The members may be adj iil'stable or may bechanged for othcfi's-of :.-'difi'erentsize or form or to vary the dep-thof cut. The members shown have shares'onct tters j, andattached to them(luck feet or like suitable plates 71. As-

drawn parts-j, p,=and clamp head 7' are integral, and'suchintegral-parts are shown in' pairsifixed. tight upon axle by bolts 7''and.--1 n such position that during rotation, each-cutter is followedby its (luck foot or thruster, and the latter by the cutter .oftheother: member of the pair.

: These details may be varied-however. The-direction of rot'a'tlon isasshowln by arrows, and the action of the pivots or joints plates, theouter ends ofwhich are wide.

These feet push to their rear the weeds thatare cut and make the groundsmoother. The cutters and duck feet are set on spindle 7 (see Fig. 4).sufiiciently close to one another to make adjacent duck feet overlap attheir outer ends and are not as in Fig. 1 whlch shows onl a few of thecutters and duck feet. Other rubbish on the ground besides weeds willalso be thrust backward by thefsoilclearing members p. When part b isdetached, so as not to be rotated by wheel gla'xle j is out of gear. A-supply of cultivator members 7') of different lengths kept 'in reserve.Y

A shield 1 may be its-illustrated by dotted lines with its top sufiiciently. smooth and rounded to enable it to pass safely under lowfoliage. v Wheel (I may have a cover but it is not shown and wouldrarely be useful. The cultivating parts attachable to spindlej may be.varicd greatly; thus in Fig. 5 the cutter 7' has a lateral flange orwing-7" at one or each side of its rear instead of a duck foot 7).Instead of the barrel shaped wheel tl a plurality of other wheels isusable, formmg part of a main frame, adapted to keep extension n inworking position at the sideof the mainframe. Frame 11, can by reason nand lc work either on the level or from time to timc'on sloping groundand can adjust itself accon'dingto the soil surface. .The depth at" u tisrgulated by the position of the skt' v (to attach to spindle anddesigns may be When the implement ;is bein drawn to or i from Work andit isdesired that thc c'ultivatmg members shall be clear of the ground,

the fside frame n can be raised as by coupling some suitable part of achain or chains as n or the like to any suitablehook or hooks as n. i

Having described this invention what'is claimed by LcttersPatent is 1.In a cultivator, the combination of a vehicle; a frame swinginglymountedon the side of the vehicle; a shaft journaled 06 said frame; cultivatingimplements mounted on said shaft; means for rotating said shaft throughthe travel of the vehicle; a share swiveled on the outer end of theframe/and supporting the same; and means for adjusting said share,substantially as described.

Tn a cultivator, the combination of a wheeled vehicle; a frameswingingly mounted on the vehicle; a shaft journalcd on said frame;cultivating implements mounted on said shaft; a pinion mounted on theshaft v pinions mounted onthe vehicle and driven through the travelthereof, and adapted to drive the pinion on said shaft; 21 shareswiveled on the outer end of the frame and supinn) :1

is: in} 1mm, suhwt porting the same; and

ha! 1m are $11 bstzmf inn Sui

In a cuitnatm' scribed, the, cembirm F3 030; a frmnv swi of the which; al

wing a h pmium mounted 0n "en frmn &

levied i0 be dri termediafe p 19 and adapted 4 inion mom my} on Um an 1non the Quiz-r euai wow a gem 0n shaft pxmor

